Aeroplane



G. VLAHOV AEROPLANE Jan. 31, 1933.

Original Filed July 2, 1928 INVENTOR 6&5 'Wahov V I V ATTORNEY Patented Jan. 31, 1933 UNITED STATES V GnonenvLAnov, on NEW YORK, N. Yl, ASSIGNOR To Jon v nonrzmaiv or YORK, N. Y.

' AEnorLANE Application filed July 2,. 1928, Serial No. 289,998 and. in Canada July'2, 1927. antenna-,2; $1931.

This invention relates to toy aeroplanes, and contemplates, among other things, :the provision of a source of motive power entirely outside of the plane for rotating the coax ially mounted propellers.

' In toys of the type referred to, the motor has usually been carried by the plane itself, and has taken various forms which add materiallv to the Weight of the plane. My in vention includes the provision of a distant source of power not carried by the plane, but

which is operatively connected to the independently mounted and coaXially arranged propeller shafts andwhich is under the con 15 plane is allowed to fly freely in all directions and at various controlled speeds within a definite range, and for an. unlimited period of time. i V

The invention contemplates .further improvements in the art of flying aeroplanes including control thereof from terra firma and allowing continuous flight for an unlimited period and at any desired speed whilethe operator is enabled to reverse the action of the driving mechanism to show the plane up and to reverse the direction of flight, if desired; The various objects of my invention will be clear from the description which follows and from the drawing, in which,

Fig. 1 is a side elevation and partial vertical section of my improved plane.

Fig. 2 is a partial'verticalsection and side view of a part of the plane and of the driv-.

' ing mechanism therefor, taken on thejline 22 of Fig. 1, and showing in dotted lines the position which may be assumed by certain of the parts when the plane is in flight.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged vertical section of the coupling which connects the flexible cable with the driving mechanism of the plane and with the source of power. V

Fig. 4 is a top plan view of the same.

Fig. 5 is a front view and partial vertical 1- posed form of the motive power.

Fig. 6 is a vertical section of the same, taken on theline 66 of Fig. 5. l p

In one of the many practical embodiments of my invention, as illustrated, I prefer to trol of the operator at all times, while the section of the gear boxembodying a prouse a pair of propellersirotating in opposite m directions foreliminating torquetending to spin theplane. Oneof th'e' propellers 10 is mounted on one end o'f-the shaft 11in the usual manner, said shaft being suitably j our} nailed near the other end thereof'in thepartition "14L. Onsaid shaftfis fixeda suitable gear such as thespur gear 15. Meshingwith sald ear and preferably arranged at right angles theretofis the larger'perforated gear I 16. i The teeth 17 ,of'said spur gear enter the: perforations 18 of the gear 16 whereby rota;v tion of the perforated gear will cause rotation of the propeller 10. i

A second propellerillO is'mounted on' p,

hollow propeller shaft 111in the usual man-1 ner as by means of the nut-100 and the bushmg 101, said shaft being supported the head 12 of the fuselage13 and by the solid propeller shaft 11. The d rivefor the hollow 7e; 7

shaft 111 is similar in allf respects to that i for the shaft 11 and consists of the spur gear 115 and the perforated gear 116 preferably identical with the gears 15 and 16 respective-.

The supports for the perforated gears and A the couplings which operatively connejctsaid gears to the flexible drive shafts areprefer ably identical, so that only one of the sup Y ports and couplings need be described. Each of the perforatedgears ismounted on a shaft l9 passingthrough the bearing 20. Near the lower end of the shaft-19 as at 21, is a pin 22 projecting outside thereof to form an anchor for the coupling29. The bearing 20 isse cured at the upper end23 thereof to the swingable frame 24 which is preferably U shaped, having upstanding arms 25 and 26 engaging and pivotally mounted" on the shafts 111 and 11 respectively. The lower end 27 of the bearing 20 is externally threaded and has an opening 28 therein of suitable size to receive the coupling 29. i j

Rotation of the shafts 19 is effected by means of flexibles'hafts as 30 and 31 of thin music wire or-the like. Each of said shafts passes through a bushing 32into the interior of the hollow coupling 29. The end 33 of eachof the flexible shafts is bent at substantially right angles to the remainder and .is 9

forced'into one of the narrow slots 34 made longitudinally of and in the wall of the coupling, whereby the flexibleshaft is firmly 'se cured to said coupling. Each of said cou-' plings together with the bushing 32 therefor,

is loosely inserted into 'the internally threaded nut 35, which is adapted to besecured in threaded engagement with the end .27fof'the b earing20.--

To couple. the shaft 1 9 while" the flexible,shafts,'the nut 35 is moved downwardly past the bushing 32 to expose the coupling. 29. .Thje pin-ZQ is then inserted into the slots 34, "thecoupling29 entering the Opening 28 of the -bearing.l The nut 35 is then screwed on tothe end 27funtilthe threaded extremity v I of saidendis closeftothe flange 36 of the flight of the-plane is, of'course, limited by coupling, wherebythe parts are firmly secured together and the flexible shaft and the the controlof the operator. .The range of the length of the flexible shafts. When the V 7 plane isin full'flight, it'may be pulled by the L N flexible shafts toward the operator who would usually stand toward one side" of the I plane; The flexible shafts, therefore, tend to W pull the gears 16and the shafts 1 8'on which they are mounted, together with itheframe. V I v 24 to one.v side, and'fmight exert an undesir able 'dragonethe'plane tending to tilt the plane or to reduce the speed or'jstop the f flight. It is" for the purpose of preventing. undue tilting and for minimizing the, pullor a: drag of the flexible shafts on the gears '16 that i 7 ed on the propeller shafts.

the supportingframe 24 is swingably mount- Itwill be'seen that the gears 16 are so mounted and supported that when the flex- *iblef shafts are for any reason pulled out of the vertical' when the plane is flown in a c'ircle about the operator, the framev 24 is swung about the shafts 11 and 111, carrying with it the gear 16 intoa'position wherein the least pull is exerted on the plane'and tendencytoward tilting ispractically eliminated. If

a only one propeller were used, the entire plane mightb'e caused to spin about the shaft 19 as an axis when the flexible shaft and said shaft 19are rotated. It is in order to prevent any tooperate'the plane in a proper and normal such spinning'efl'ect largely that I have pro- 5 vided two propellers rotating'inopposite directions and consequently rotating the shafts 1 9 similarly, I am able to overcome this disadvantageous spinning efl'ect therefore and manner by the use of two flexible shafts I j F or rotating saidshafts, any'suitablemeans distantfrom the plane may be provided. For economy a'ndsimplicity, however, I prefer to use a hand motor including spur gears '37 and 38 arranged on opposite sides of perforated gear 39 and supported onthe shafts 40 and 41 respectively in the gear box,

42, whereby the shafts 40 and 41; are rotated in opposite directions on the rotation of the gear 39; A crank 43 is mounted on-the shafts Mon which the gear 39 is carried and serves to rotate said shaft andthe-gear. 39 thereon at the will of the operatorand at anysuitable "speed desired. It will be understood thatthe plane maybe caused to take oif-, to alight, to

diveand to perform tricks bystarting, stopping and varying the speed of rotation of the crank. suitably connected to the shafts 40 and 41 as by means ofpins similar to the pins 22 pr0- by couplings andnuts similar to'thos'e provided at the "upper ends of theshaftsBO and 31.

For preventing kinking or knotting ofthef flexible shafts 30 and 31,1a suitable flexible housing as 45 is. provided therefor. Said Theflexible shafts 30iandf31'ai1e 8 0 V r vided at the lower ends of the shaftsl9, and

housing may consist of a length of thin wire wound loosely as in the form of ahelical coil spring about said flex ble shafts, sufliclent clearance being left to allow the'rotation of said-shafts in said housing with-outeundue friction, interference .'or restralnt. Tosea cure the ends of the housing in'pla-ce, each.

end .may be inserted, into v a suitable hole "in one ofthe'bushings 3 2 providedin connec- I tion with the couplings'29, f v g The upper part of the fuselage 13.maygbe covered except atthe cockpits and the wings madehollow so that the current of air fromv the propellers causes thefuselage andwings to act as sounding boxes or boards, thereby exaggerating the noise made by thepi'opeller and simulating the sound of a full-sized plane in flight.

The operation" of my deviceis; asfollowsi The plane is set up onthe ground to rest on the wheels i7 and on the skid 48. 'When the gear box '4=2is used,sai-d box-maybe held .in the hands of theoperatoras by passing one hand through theban d .49, closing the torotate'the crank 43'. The operatormay stand onthe ground or at an elevated point,

and by rotating the crank 43, thereby rotates the flexible'shafts 30 and '31,fthe' perforated gears and spur gears, whereby the shafts'll andlll and the propellersldand are driven. 1

hand about the box, andusing the other hand i When sufficient speed has "been imparted?- to the propellers, the plane will roll along the ground in the usual manner and then rise into the air to begin its flight. Aisivillbe obvious, the crank 43 may be replaced by an automatic source of power such'as a motor provided with suitable' controls if desired.

It will be understood that the range of flight P is limited by thelengthsfof the shafts 30 and 1 31 and that the plane is under the control of the operator at all times. I 7

' Should it be desired "to make the plane 7 fly higher, then the crank48 is merelyturned faster, and should it be desired to cause the plane to perform the usual acrobatic tricks, rotation of the crank is slowedorstopped, thereby lessening or cutting off the power a and sending the plane into a nose dive from which it may be righted into normal flyingposition by again rotating the crank and imparting forward movement to the plane.

By the proper adjustment of the wings as will be readily understood, the plane may be caused to perform other tricks. Itmay be brought to the ground gradually and caused to alight'in simulation of the action of a full sized plane by gradually reducing. the speed of rotation of the propeller. The flight of the plane may be maintained for an'unlimited period due to the independentarrangement of the source of power outside of,-

entirely independently of, and at a distance from the plane. I be made, or should the plane head toward an obstacle, the oper- Should a poor start ator may, by reversing the direction of rotation of the shafts 30 and 31 either through the hand crank or motor, so slow up the plane that it may be stopped quickly or even reversed, thereby obtaining an eflicient'braking effect.

It will be understood that various changes may be made from the preferred structure i shown and described, which would fall within the spirit and scope of this inventionand within the range of equivalents afforded by the appended claims.

I claim: v

1. A flying device including a fuselage, a partition in the fuselage, two propellers of opposite pitch and rotatable in opposite directions simultaneously, an inner shaft for one of the propellers supported by the partition and by the fuselage, an outer shaft for the other propeller, a source of motive power outside of the device, a gear on each of said 2. A flying device including two propel- 6G lers of opposite pitch, concentrically arranged propeller shafts, each carrying one of said propellers and means including a pair of flexible shafts extending outside of the device and a relatively stationary motor operatively connected to said shafts for rotating said propellers in opposite directions a single housing for the greater part of both of said flexible shafts, and separate housings forthe' end portions of said flexible shafts.

3. 1 11 a flying device, propeller means therefor, revoluble flexible shafts extending outside of the device for'transmitting power to said propeller meansand a flexible housingfor said shafts comprlslng a s1ngle wire wound in spaced turns about the greater part Y of both of said shafts, said shafts bein spaced apart at both ends-thereof.

a 4. Ina toy aeroplaneoperated from a distant source J of power, a pair of coaxially mounted propellers ofopposite pitch, a flexp r ible shaft operatively 'connectingeachof the propellers'to the source of power, and a single I flexible housing for the major part'of both of said flexible shafts. I

In a toy aeroplane,a pair of concentric shafts, a propeller on each of said-shafts,

flexible shafts extending'outside of: the device and geared to eachof said propeller shafts and means mechanically connecting said flexible shaftsto a distance source of power ineluding a slotted sleeve having an axial opening therein through which the flexible shaft passes and into the slot of which the end of the flexible shaft is bent.

6. In a'toy aeroplane, a pair of concentric propeller shafts, a propeller at the end .of each of saidshafts and means outside of the aeroplane and movable independently of the movement thereof for rotating the propellers simultaneously in opposite directions, said i means including a rotatable perforated gear wheel, and a flexible shaft operatively connecting'thegear wheel to each of the propel ler shafts. a

=7. In a toy aeroplane, a fuselage, wings on 111 said fuselage, a pair, of concentric propeller shafts mountedwithin the fuselage and projecting forwardly thereof, a U-s'haped bracket mounted at one end on one of said pr peller shafts and at its other end on the other? of said shafts and swingable about the axes of said sha-f.ts, a gear carried by each of said shafts, a pair of gears carried by said bracket and each meshing with a gear on thepropeller shaft, a pair of flexible shafts each connected atone end with one of the gears on the bracket and means at the other. ends of said flexible shafts forrotatingthe flexible shafts simultaneously in opposite directions, said means. being movable in all directions independently of the movementof the aeroplane. a

V 8. In a toy aeroplane, a pair of concentric propeller shafts,a gear on each of said shafts, a perforated gearm'eshing with each ofsaid gears, a pair offlexible shafts each connected to' one of said perforatedgears at one of the ends thereof, and means, including a perforated gear, operativelylconnected to the 0th or ends of said flexible shafts for rotating tatedin one direction.

the flexible shaftsin opposite directions when the second-mentioned perforated gearisrow 9. In a toy aeroplane, a propeller shaft, a swingable shaft at substantially right'angles thereto, intermeshinggearing onsaid shafts, a 'cross-pinat the lower end of the swingable shaft, a sleeve for removably engaging said cross pin, and a flexible. shaft secured to'said sleeve. v, r 3

.10. Ina toy aeroplane, a-pair ofcon'ce-ntric propeller sha-fts',*a propeller at the end of'each of said shafts, a fiexibleshaft for each of the propeller shafts, means, for opveratively connecting each ,ofthe flexible shafts to. one of the propeller shafts, said I of the propeller shafts'for varying the angusaid flexible shafts in opposite, directionssi.

means being adapted toswing about the axes v lar relation'of theaeroplane tosa-id flexible shafts'on the tilting-of the aeroplane" about its longitudinal axis, and-means for rotating 7 inultaneously including a main gearwheel, a

gearwheel on each of said flexibleshafts meshing: with the main gear wheel and disposed frelatively to said main gear wheel to rotate infopposite directions, and means for rotating said'main gear wheel.

11. In a toy aeroplane, a pair of concentric propellershafts, a gear on each of said shafts, a driving gearmeshing with each of the shaft gears, means for supporting the driving gears 'for movement therewith about a the axes of said propeller'shafts and maintaining the driving gears in engagement with w 4 said shaft gears, a pair of flexible shafts each connected to one of said driving gears at one of the ends thereof, and means operative- 1y connected to the other ends of said; flexible shafts for rotating said flexibleshafts in opposite' directions, comprising a driven gear at each of sald otherendsof .sald flexlble shafts, a main gear in operatlve engagement with said driven gearsandfarranged to rotate said drlven gears in opposite dlrections,

and means for rotating themain gear. I 12. In a toy aeroplane, a fuselage, wings on said fuselage, a pair of concentrlc profor 'rotating the flexible shafts in opposite directions and thereby to supply powerto rotate thepropellersiand to cause the aeroplane, to fly, said means being mounted inde-' pendently of the aeroplane.

14. In an aeroplana a horizontally extending elongated fuselage, substantially horizontally extending wings carried by and arranged transversely of-thefuselage, said wings being of sufiicient area to'support the aeroplane in flight, a pair-of propellers of opposite pitch arranged in front of the fuselage,ahorizontal shaft for one of the propel lers, said shaft "being arranged longitudinally of the fuselage, a second shaft concentric with the first-mentionedshaft for the other adapted to continuously transmit power for rotating said shafts in opposite directions to prevent displacement of thefuselag'e. and of ,the wings carried thereby about the axes ofsaid propellers by reasonvof the torque cre:

ated by the rotation of either of said propels lers, and means for controlling the-speeds of rotation of the shafts while the aeroplane is infiight. v GEORGE LAHOV,

propeller, means carried by the fuselage and peller shafts mounted withinthe fuselage, a

propeller on each ofv said shafts, and means operatively connected to'said shafts for rotating said shafts in opposite directions in "cluding a pair of flexible shafts, a gear at propellers-of opposite pitch, a flexible shaft operatively connected to each of the propel- 'lers, and means independent of the aeroplane V r and adapted to be supported on the ground as V 

